How to Keep SQUIRRELS & Crows Out of Corn?

How to Keep SQUIRRELS & Crows Out of Corn?

Wed Jul 09, 2008 7:10 pm

Ok, this is two questions in one sort of. A coworker told me that when his corn got to be about a foot tall, crows were pulling the plants out of the ground presumably to pick the kernel off of the bottom of the plant. My neighbor told me that when his corn started having ears on it, the squirrels cleaned him out of corn. What preventative measures do you suggest. So far I haven't had anything in there but the plants are just getting around 5" tall. Thanks, Mike

My best advice as this has worked for me in Florida is to buy one of those wooden owls and stick it up on a pole near the garden. This works wonders for me. If there is a few stragglers I just shoot em. Gotta love the south.

I live in a NJ suburb so those solutions won't be feasible. My kids might like the wooden owl idea though...

mike, I'm planning to try this:

If larger critters like birds and raccoons are getting to your corn, try wrapping duct tape around the ear an inch above the stalk and an inch below the tip

http://www.organicgardening.com/feature ... 72,00.htmlI also read somewhere that you could put a brown paper bag over the ears and tie it closed. Timing is "just as the silk begins to wilt". I'm going to try these methods if the squirrels or birds try to get at my corn. This is my first time growing corn so I don't know if these methods will work, however.

Also when I sowed my corn seeds (in May), I used floating row cover over fencing that's too small for blackbirds and grackles to get through in one area and covered row tunnels in another area until the corn outgrew them (about 18' tall). I'm not sure if doing this would make it too hot inside in your area at this time of the year. For me, it provided extra warmth for the corn so it worked out well.

I do have a plastic owl, quite realistic looking. I think I'll try putting that outside. Already have the 22 option also Break barrel pellet rifles pack quite a punch also. They aren't Red Ryders. I have seen them put a pellet through a city pigeon. I'll try the owl option first though.

Kids would like a slingshot. Every kid should love practicing a slingshot on squirrels. I had a slingshot as a kid and it was one of the greatest outdoor toys I remember having. However, I never shot at anything live or moving.

When we first moved into this house and learned of the problem with the cats constantly in our yard, I found a slingshot gun somewhere. It was wood shaped and painted black like a gun, but with slight modifications so you could attach the really big rubber bands. I learned to load it quickly, open the door and fire under the bushes when the cats were mating and yowling like crazy in the middle of the night. Never did hit any of the cats, but the noise was enough to see blurry cat fur shoot by.

"Love all God's creatures, the animals, the plants. Love everything to perceive the divine mystery in all." -Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Not sure how hard it would be or feasible but I work for a wine distribution company and was recently sent to Argentina/Chile to visit a few vineyards and wineries. In that area of the world they have a ton of pests that range from rodents to mountain lions.

The main problem child though is birds and they love the sweet grapes so they use a speaker and the recorded sound of other predatory birds from the area. But they said that you could do this with any animal sound that you like as all animals react to sound and if it is something that is foreign to them they will stay away.

Not sure what the cost would be for an outdoor speaker and something to play the sounds but it is a cool method and if you pick something that's a little more peaceful than a grizzly bear might even be relaxing to people.

I use a good electric fence around my garden to discourage the squirrels, raccoons, groundhogs and deer, however, I don't hesitate to crank out the ole 22 given the chance. My only experience of birds pulling up corn to eat the seed is with blackbirds and only rarely then. I do use treated seed - looks like a red dust - and I think this discourages their pulling the plant up. I havn't heard of them pulling up a 5-6" plant though. Good Luck and keep us posted. Don

Interesting, I grow corn, and have crows. The yard is over run with squirrels. Neither have ever bothered anything in the garden. Now I have massive oak trees and the squirrels have more food than they can eat. Their only destructive behavior is related to digging holes to bury acorns. They will often inadvertently dig up small seedlings as they bury acorns in my garden and in various planters. Also the sprouting acorns are a bit of a problem as the squirrels plant so many oak trees throughout my planters and gardening spaces. I have unlimited space, so if big critters do cause a problem, I will build a 12 x 24 foot enclosed planting frame. Will be built with treated 4 x 4's and other treated lumber, the enclosure can look neat and is extremely effective in keeping any larger critters from vegetables of interest. Will provide photos if you wish, of such a structure that I built for a friend.

Alex

Last edited by hendi_alex on Thu Jul 17, 2008 1:01 am, edited 1 time in total.

Eclectic gardening style, drawing from 45 years of interest and experience. Mostly plant in raised beds and containers primarily using intensive gardening techniques.Alex

Alex, my guess is that you aren't likely to have problems. I've had deer sleeping inside my fenced garden all season and have yet to lose anything I planted to them. My garden is in the middle of 120 acres of pasture (more, if you count the neighbors), and I guess they're full by nightfall. The garden is safe from coyotes, though, so it's a good place to sleep. I'm also not using the bulk of the enclosed space; about an acre of it is a big blackberry bramble, so they have places to sleep.

I do plan to raise the fence higher when I can; we're discussing bushhogging the berries and cultivating most of the area next year. I think then I might well have a problem with the deer. I asked my husband to hold off with the bushhog until after the fall harvest.

Re: How to Keep SQUIRRELS & Crows Out of Corn?

Fri Jul 07, 2017 2:45 pm

Hi guys!

I see I'm a leetle late to the comment party. The last comment by my watch was nearly ten years ago.... but if you're reading this...maybe in 2035, my info is still relevant even though I'll be working in the proverbial heavenly garden by then...

I can't comment about crows. We have a few but they aren't pesky. But I will tell you what to do about squirrels:

1. Trap or kill them. (If you use the lethality method I can assure you that your corn fed squirrels will be tasty!)

2. Hire a garden cat. They work cheap for kitty food. Assuming there are cats in your locale, simply keep el cheapo dry food near the garden in a protected place. You know but not tooo much kitty food. Just enough to keep the kitties wanting more. When you visit in the morning and see the food gone you'll know you're in biz.

What I'm sharing is from actual experience. Both methods work and only these two methods work. I don't care how clever you are...the squirrel is smarter than you are...up to a point. They WILL work hard to get into a trap. They will submit to a lead projectile. They won't gnaw your corn when hungry cats are patrolling your plant palace.

Re: How to Keep SQUIRRELS & Crows Out of Corn?

Fri Jul 07, 2017 8:36 pm

I have never had a problem with squirrels in the garden any place I ever lived. I have 2 squirrel families where I live now with a total of 11 squirrels and they never bother anything in my garden not even ripe corn. Lots of people complain about squirrels in the garden but never actually see squirrels eat anything in the garden. I sometimes see squirrels take a short cut through my garden to get to another tree but they never eat anything in the garden. I have lots of birds that eat bugs. I have moles that live in the soil they eat grubs and cut worms. I have 2 cats and 1 small dog that never bother the garden plants but that dog likes to dig holes. There are crows in the trees at sun rise every morning they never bother my garden. What do crows eat? I see squirrels walking around the yard and garden all day eating something off the ground but they never eat garden plants. I plant, corn, tomatoes, beans, onions, potatoes, garlic, melons, peppers, squash, kale, chard, greens, bok choy, squirrels eat none of that. I see deer in the field out back they never come into the garden either. Before I had a cat I had problems with Robins they use to peck young plants off at the soil surface.

Re: How to Keep SQUIRRELS & Crows Out of Corn?

Fri Jul 07, 2017 8:54 pm

Funny, how different people's experiences are. I am growing corn now and have ripe ears. We have squirrels in our yard, but they haven't bothered it. That may well be because we also have two dogs that are frequently in the yard. When the dogs are in the yard, squirrels would be risking their lives to try to get to the corn. But I also do have it fenced in with with wire fencing, mainly to keep the dogs from digging around it.:

(if you click on the picture it will go right side up)

I also fence some of my beds with deer netting.

Where I lived in the past we had deer, raccoons, woodchucks, etc and every one of them LOVED corn. But I grow in beds and it is very easy to fence individual beds with wire fencing or deer netting. The step in stakes with hooks for the fencing are not very expensive and deer netting is super cheap. If you have very persistent critters, you might have to throw a layer of deer netting across the top.

Fencing is what allows me to peaceably coexist with my animal neighbors.